Are your clients dreaming of an ultra-romantic vacation in the City of Canals? Maybe they should reconsider. With 60,000 tourists visiting each day—nearly double the number it can sustain—Venice is at risk of permanent damage, according to Italia Nostra (Our Italy).
According to a story in the Telegraph, campaigners are saying that Venice should discourage mass tourism and instead court high-spending visitors. The city could also encourage activities like university research and technology.
Rising sea levels and more frequent storms are expected to increase the level of the Venetian lagoon by 20 inches by the end of the century, threatening to undermine the foundations of centuries-old palaces and churches and swamp some parts of the city altogether, the article continues.
The environmental group also told the paper that Venice's threats were so grave that UNESCO should consider striking the city off the World Heritage list.
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